Presidency yet to receive 2017 Budget – Lai Mohammed

The Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, on Wednesday said the Presidency is yet to receive the 2017 Budget passed last week by the National Assembly.

He, however, said only the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, has advance copy of the budget.

Mohammed disclosed that the advance copy would be circulated to cabinet members in order to reconcile it will the proposal submitted to the National Assembly by President Muhammadu Buhari in December last year.

Speaking with State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, the minister said there would be need for harmonization if there are discrepancies in the two documents.

He was accompanied to the briefing by Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole, Minister of FCT, Mohammed Bello and Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu.

The tradition in the past is for the National Assembly to transmit the passed budget to the President who will then direct the relevant officials to cross-check documents or do so with them.

Mohammed said: “In respect on the budget, it was only this (Wednesday) morning that the Minister of National Planning informed the council that the budget has been passed. He has not sent to us individually copies of the passed budget.

“We now need to look at it against what we sent and if there is any discrepancy we will report back to the Minister of Budget and National Planning for harmonization.”

On whether the National Assembly has transmitted the 2017 Budget to the Executive, he said “not yet but at least the Minister of Budget and National Planning‎ has gotten an advanced copy of what was passed and that is what we need to look at and compare to what we sent. It has not been transmitted officially to the presidency.”

With the unnecessary delay of the passage of 2017 national budget which was submitted early in November,2016 to the senate for prompt appropriation but which was delayed by the corrupt-ridden senators, who padded the budget with astronomically huge amount to benefit the luxurious lifestyles of the senators, led by the president of the senate,Dr Bukola Saraki, who himself is facing false-asset declaration and money laundering relating to-foreign account tax-free-haven-Panama,current set of senators, are bunch of rogues because, despite the fact that Nigeria, is just coming out of the deep recession, the greedy senators, who only care about their luxurious lifestyle careless about improving power,modern healthcare and growing the economy in order to lift the living standard of the citizenry up.